CN116686377A

CN116686377A - Method and apparatus for device discovery using UWB

Info

Publication number: CN116686377A
Application number: CN202180087084.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李智惠; 尹康镇
Original assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Current assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-12-24
Filing date: 2021-12-23
Publication date: 2023-09-01
Also published as: EP4256827A1; KR20230121909A; WO2022139514A1; US20220210631A1

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to methods and devices for device discovery using Ultra Wideband (UWB). A method for a first UWB, comprising transmitting a control message including information about a contention window for contention-based access by using a UWB communication scheme; receiving a scheduling request message for scheduling-based access from a second UWB device in a time slot in a contention window using a UWB communication scheme; and configuring a scheduling time slot for the second UWB device based on the scheduling request message. The scheduling request message may be used for in-band device discovery.

Description

Method and apparatus for device discovery using UWB

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to Ultra Wideband (UWB) communications, and more particularly, to methods and devices for device discovery using UWB.

Background

The internet has evolved into an internet of things (IoT) network in which information, such as between distributed elements of objects, is exchanged and processed. Internet of everything (IoE) is a technology in which IoT technology and big data processing technology are combined together through connection with a cloud server or the like. For IoT implementations, technical elements such as sensing technology, wired/wireless communication, and network infrastructure, service interface technology, and security technology are necessary. Recently, sensor networks for machine-to-machine (M2M) connection, M2M communication, machine Type Communication (MTC), etc. have been under development.

IoT environments may provide intelligent Internet Technology (IT) services that create new value for human life by collecting and analyzing data generated between connected things. IoT may be applied in a variety of fields including smart homes, smart buildings, smart cities, smart cars or connected cars, smart grids, healthcare, smart devices, and advanced medical services by fusing and combining existing information technology with various industries.

Since various services are provided when developing a wireless communication system, a scheme for efficiently providing these services is required. For example, a ranging technique that utilizes UWB to measure a distance between electronic devices may be used.

Disclosure of Invention

[ technical problem ]

The present disclosure provides a method for performing device discovery using UWB. The present disclosure also provides a method for selecting and managing an appropriate device discovery method according to circumstances.

Technical scheme

A method of a first electronic device according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes transmitting a control message for device discovery using a first communication scheme, the control message including information about a contention window; in the contention window, receiving a scheduling request message SRM for scheduling the second electronic device from the second electronic device through the first communication scheme, the scheduling request message including identification information of the second electronic device; scheduling resources are configured for the second electronic device based on the scheduling request message.

A method of a second electronic device according to another aspect of the present disclosure includes receiving a control message for device discovery using a first communication scheme, the control message including information about a contention window; in the contention window, sending a scheduling request message for scheduling the second electronic device to the first electronic device through the first communication scheme, wherein the scheduling request message comprises identification information of the second electronic device; and performing a ranging procedure associated with the first communication scheme by using the scheduling resources allocated based on the scheduling request message.

A first electronic device according to another aspect of the present disclosure includes a transceiver; and a controller connected to the transceiver, wherein the controller is configured to send a control message for device discovery using the first communication scheme, the control message including information about the contention window; in the contention window, receiving a scheduling request message for scheduling the second electronic device from the second electronic device through the first communication scheme, the scheduling request message including identification information of the second electronic device; and transmitting an initiation message for UWB ranging based on the scheduling request message, the initiation message including an allocation of scheduling resources for the second electronic device.

A second electronic device according to another aspect of the present disclosure includes a transceiver; and a controller connected to the transceiver, wherein the controller is configured to receive a control message for device discovery from the first electronic device using the first communication scheme, the control message including information about the contention window; in the contention window, sending a scheduling request message for scheduling the second electronic device to the first electronic device through the first communication scheme, wherein the scheduling request message comprises identification information of the second electronic device; and performing a ranging procedure associated with the first communication scheme by using the scheduling resources allocated based on the scheduling request message.

A method of a first Ultra Wideband (UWB) device according to another aspect of the present disclosure includes transmitting a control message for contention-based access by using a UWB communication scheme, the control message including information about a contention window; receiving a scheduling request message for scheduling-based access from a second UWB device in a time slot in a contention window using a UWB communication scheme; the scheduling time slot is configured for the second UWB device based on a scheduling request message for UWB-based device discovery.

A method of a second ultra wideband device (UWB) according to another aspect of the present disclosure includes receiving a control message for contention-based access from a first UWB device by using a UWB communication scheme, the control message including information about a contention window; and transmitting a scheduling request message for the scheduling-based access to the first UWB device in a time slot in the contention window using the UWB communication scheme, wherein the scheduling request message is for UWB-based device discovery.

A first Ultra Wideband (UWB) device according to another aspect of the present disclosure includes a transceiver; and a controller configured to transmit a control message for contention-based access using the UWB communication scheme, the control message including information about a contention window; receiving a scheduling request message for scheduling-based access from a second UWB device in a time slot in a contention window using a UWB communication scheme; and configuring a scheduling slot for the second UWB device based on a scheduling request message, wherein the scheduling request message is for UWB-based device discovery.

A second Ultra Wideband (UWB) device according to another aspect of the present disclosure includes a transceiver; and a controller, wherein the controller is configured to receive a control message for contention-based access from the first UWB device by using the UWB communication scheme, the control message including information about a contention window; and transmitting a scheduling request message for the scheduling-based access to the first UWB device in a time slot in the contention window using the UWB communication scheme, wherein the scheduling request message is for UWB-based device discovery.

[ advantageous effects of the invention ]

The present disclosure provides a device discovery method using UWB, thereby solving the problems of latency and limitation of the number of devices connected simultaneously due to the device discovery method using Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE).

The present disclosure provides a method for selecting and managing an appropriate device discovery method according to circumstances, thereby achieving low power and low latency.

Drawings

The above and other aspects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

fig. 1 illustrates a communication system to which the present disclosure is applied;

FIG. 2 illustrates a flow chart of a method of operation of a communication system employing the present disclosure;

fig. 3A shows a first scenario of UWB in-band discovery according to an embodiment, and fig. 3B shows a second scenario of UWB in-band discovery according to an embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating UWB in-band discovery according to an embodiment;

FIG. 5 illustrates a transport block for UWB in-band discovery according to an embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating UWB in-band discovery according to an embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating a method for selectively managing UWB in-band discovery according to an embodiment;

fig. 8 illustrates a transport block or round including a contention window for a slave and a window for the slave, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 9 is a flow chart illustrating a method of a first electronic device according to an embodiment;

FIG. 10 is a flow chart illustrating a method of a second electronic device according to an embodiment;

Fig. 11 shows a structure of a first electronic device according to an embodiment; and

fig. 12 shows a structure of a second electronic device according to an embodiment.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In describing embodiments of the present disclosure, descriptions related to technical contents well known in the art and not directly associated with the present disclosure will be omitted. This omission of unnecessary description is intended to prevent obscuring the main idea of the present disclosure and to more clearly convey it.

For similar reasons, some elements may be enlarged, omitted, or schematically shown in the drawings. Furthermore, the size of each element may not fully reflect the actual size.

The advantages and features of the present disclosure and the manner of attaining them will become apparent by reference to the embodiments described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. However, the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments set forth below, but may be implemented in various forms. The following examples are provided solely for the purpose of fully disclosing the present disclosure and informing those skilled in the art the scope of the present disclosure and are limited only by the scope of the appended claims. The same or similar reference numbers will be used throughout the specification and drawings to refer to the same or like elements.

Here, it will be understood that each block of the flowchart, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions specified in the flowchart block or blocks. These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-usable or computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-usable or computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture including instruction means that implement the function specified in the flowchart block or blocks. The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the functions specified in the flowchart block or blocks.

Furthermore, each block of the flowchart illustrations may represent a module, segment, or portion of code, which comprises one or more executable instructions for implementing the specified logical function(s). It should also be noted that in some alternative implementations, the functions noted in the block may occur out of the order. For example, two blocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality involved.

As used herein, the term "unit" may refer to a software element or a hardware element, such as a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), that performs a predetermined function. However, the "unit" does not always have a meaning limited to software or hardware. The "unit" may be configured to be stored in an addressable storage medium or to execute one or more processors. Thus, the term "unit" includes, for example, software elements, object-oriented software elements, class elements or task elements, processes, functions, attributes, procedures, subroutines, segments of program code, drivers, firmware, microcode, circuitry, data, databases, data structures, tables, arrays, and parameters. The elements and functions provided by a "unit" may be combined into a smaller number of elements or "units" or divided into a larger number of elements or "units". Furthermore, the elements and "units" may be implemented as one or more Central Processing Units (CPUs) within a reproduction device or a secure multimedia card. Further, according to some embodiments, a "unit" may include one or more processors.

The term "terminal" or "device" as used herein may be referred to as a Mobile Station (MS), user Equipment (UE), user Terminal (UT), wireless terminal, access Terminal (AT), terminal, subscriber unit, subscriber Station (SS), wireless device, wireless communication device, wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU), mobile node, handset, or other terminology. Various embodiments of the terminal may include, but are not limited to, cellular phones, smart phones with wireless communication functions, personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) with wireless communication functions, wireless modems, portable computers with wireless communication functions, photographing devices such as digital cameras with wireless communication functions, gaming devices with wireless communication functions, music storage and playback appliances with wireless communication functions, internet appliances that enable wireless internet connectivity and browsing, as well as portable units or terminals that have a combination of such functions. Further, terminals may include, but are not limited to, M2M terminals and MTC terminals/devices. A terminal may also be referred to as an electronic device or simply as a device or apparatus herein.

Hereinafter, the operation principle of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description of the present disclosure, a detailed description of known functions or configurations incorporated herein will be omitted when it may be determined that the description may make the subject matter of the present disclosure unnecessarily unclear. The terms to be described below are terms defined in consideration of functions in the present disclosure, and may be different according to users, intention or habit of the users. Accordingly, the definition of terms should be made based on the contents of the entire specification.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a communication system using UWB will be described by way of example, but the embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to other systems having similar technical backgrounds or characteristics. Examples may include using Bluetooth ^TM Or (b)Is a communication system of (a). Thus, based on a determination by those skilled in the art, embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to other communication systems with some modifications without departing significantly from the scope of the present disclosure.

In general, wireless sensor network technologies are classified into Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) technologies and Wireless Personal Area Network (WPAN) technologies according to perceived distance. In this case, the WLAN corresponds to IEEE 802.11-based technology, which enables access to the backbone network within a radius of about 100 m. WPAN corresponds to IEEE 802.15 based technology and includes Bluetooth ^TM 、Ultra Wideband (UWB), etc. A wireless network implementing the wireless network techniques described above may include a plurality of electronic devices.

UWB may refer to wireless communication technologies using a bandwidth of 500MHz or more, or a bandwidth of 20% or more corresponding to a center frequency, according to the definition of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). UWB may mean the frequency band itself to which UWB communication is applied. Hereinafter, the device discovery method is described based on the UWB communication scheme, but this is merely an example, and various wireless communication technologies may be actually used.

Specific terms used in the following description are provided to aid in understanding the present disclosure, and the use of these specific terms may be changed to other forms without departing from the technical spirit of the present disclosure.

An application specific file (ADF) may have, for example, a data structure in a hosting application or application specific data application data structure.

An Application Protocol Data Unit (APDU) may be a command and response used in the case of communication with an application data structure in a UWB device.

The application specific data may have, for example, a file structure having an application level and a routing level, including UWB session data and UWB control information required for a UWB session.

The controller may be a ranging device that defines or controls a Ranging Control Message (RCM) (or control message).

The slave may be a ranging device using ranging parameters in an RCM (or control message) received from the controller.

The dynamic scrambling time stamp sequence (STS) mode may correspond to an operation mode in which the STS is not repeated during a ranging session, unlike a static STS. In this mode, the STS may be managed by a ranging device and a ranging session key used to generate the STS may be managed by a security component.

The applet may be, for example, an applet executing on a secure component that includes service data and UWB parameters. In this disclosure, the applet may be a FiRa applet defined by FiRa.

The ranging device may be a device capable of performing UWB ranging. In the present disclosure, the ranging device may be an Enhanced Ranging Device (ERDEV) defined in IEEE 802.15.4z, or a FiRa device defined by the FiRa alliance (FiRa). The ranging device may be referred to as a UWB device.

The UWB-enabled application may be an application for UWB services. For example, the UWB-enabled application may be an application for UWB sessions that uses a service framework API for configuring out-of-band (OOB) connectors, security services, and/or UWB. In this disclosure, UWB-enabled applications may be referred to simply as applications or UWB applications. The UWB-enabled application may be a FiRa-enabled application defined by FiRa.

The framework may be a component for providing access to profiles and individual UWB configurations and/or notifications. The framework may be a collection of logical software components including, for example, a profile manager, an OOB connector, security services, and/or UWB services. In the present disclosure, the framework may be a FiRa framework defined by FiRa.

The OOB connector may be a software component for configuring an out-of-band (OOB) connection (e.g., BLE connection) between ranging devices. In the present disclosure, the OOB connector may be a FiRa OOB connector defined by FiRa.

The profile may be a predetermined set of UWB and OOB configuration parameters. In the present disclosure, the profile may be a FiRa profile defined by FiRa.

The profile manager may be a software component for implementing the available profiles in the ranging device. In the present disclosure, the profile manager may be a FiRa profile manager defined by a FiRa.

The service may correspond to an implementation of a use case that provides the service to the end user.

The intelligent ranging device may be a ranging device capable of implementing an optional framework API. In the present disclosure, the smart ranging device may be a FiRa smart device defined by a FiRa.

The Global Dedicated File (GDF) may be at the root layer of application specific data, including data necessary to configure the UWB session.

The framework API may be an API used by UWB-enabled applications to communicate with the framework.

The initiator may be a ranging device that initiates a ranging exchange.

The Object Identifier (OID) may be an identifier of the ADF in the application data structure.

Out-of-band (OOB) may correspond to the underlying wireless technology and may be data communication that does not use UWB.

The Ranging Data Set (RDS) may be data (e.g., UWB session key, session ID, etc.) required for configuration of UWB sessions that require confidentiality, authenticity, and integrity protection.

The responder may be a ranging device that responds to the initiator in the ranging exchange.

The STS may be an encryption sequence for increasing the integrity and accuracy of the ranging time stamps. STS may be generated from the ranging session key.

The secure channel may be a data channel that is resistant to over-hearing and tampering.

The security component may be, for example, an entity (e.g., a Secure Element (SE) or Trusted Execution Environment (TEE)) having a defined security level that interacts with a UWB Subsystem (UWBs) to provide RDS to the UWBs when using a dynamic STS.

The Secure Element (SE) may be a tamper-resistant secure hardware component that may be used as a secure component in a ranging device.

The security ranging may be based on ranging by the STS generated through the strong encryption operation.

The security service may be a software component for interacting with a security component such as a SE or TEE.

The service applet may be an applet on a secure component that handles service specific transactions.

The service data may be data defined by a service provider, which needs to be transferred between two ranging devices for service implementation.

A service provider may be an entity that defines and provides the hardware and software needed to provide a particular service for an end user.

The static STS mode corresponds to an operation mode in which STS is repeated for a session and need not be managed by a security component.

The Secure UWB Service (SUS) applet may be an applet on a SE in communication with the applet for searching for data required to implement a secure UWB session with another ranging device. In addition, the SUS applet may transfer corresponding data (information) to the UWBS.

UWB services may be software components for providing access to the UWBs.

The UWB session may be a period of time from when the controller and the slave start communicating over UWB until they stop communicating. UWB sessions may include ranging, data transmission, or both ranging and data transmission.

The UWB session ID may be an ID (e.g., a 32 bit integer) that identifies a UWB session shared between the controller and the slave.

The UWB session key may be a key for protecting UWB sessions. The UWB session key may be used to generate STS. In this disclosure, the UWB session key may be a UWB ranging session key (urs k) and may be simply referred to as a session key.

The UWB Subsystem (UWBs) may be a hardware component for implementing UWB PHY and MAC layers (specifications). The UWBS may have an interface for the framework and an interface for searching for the security component of the RDS. In the present disclosure, the UWB PHY and MAC specifications may be the FiRa PHY and FiRa MAC specifications defined by FiRa reference IEEE 802.15.4/4 z.

The UWB message may be a message including a payload Information Element (IE) transmitted by a UWB device (e.g., ERDEV).

The ranging message may be a message sent by a UWB device (e.g., ERDEV) during UWB ranging. For example, the ranging message may be a message such as a Ranging Initiation Message (RIM), a Ranging Response Message (RRM), a Ranging Final Message (RFM), and a Measurement Report Message (MRM) that is transmitted by a UWB device (e.g., ERDEV) at a specific stage of a ranging round. The ranging message may include one or more UWB messages. Multiple ranging messages may be combined into a single message if desired. For example, in the case of non-delayed two-way ranging (DS-TWR), the RFM and MRM may be combined into a single message at the final stage of ranging.

A payload information element (payload IE) and may include the MAC payload of the UWB MAC frame defined in IEEE 802.15.4/4 z. The MAC payload may include a plurality of payload IEs.

The data transmission IE may be an additional payload IE for transmitting application data. The application data may be data transferred in an application or framework in a higher layer of the UWB MAC layer. The data transmission IE may be used in a procedure of performing ranging between the initiator and the responder. In this case, the ranging message may include at least one of a payload IE for ranging and a data transmission IE for application data transmission, or both the payload IE and the data transmission IE. For example, the data transmission IE may be included as part of a payload IE of a MAC payload of a Ranging Result Report Message (RRRM) and RIM, RRM, RFM, MRM for ranging and transmitted. The data transmission IE may be transmitted to a payload IE of a MAC payload of a downlink time difference of arrival (TDoA) message (DTM).

Scheduling based ranging may be used for ranging rounds where the controller schedules the slave to send measurement reports and/or RFRAME in different time slots. In this disclosure, the scheduling-based ranging may also be referred to as time scheduling ranging. The scheduling mode in which the scheduling-based ranging is used may be referred to as a time scheduling mode.

Contention-based ranging may be used when the controller does not know the MAC address of the slave involved in the UWB session (ranging session). In contention-based ranging, the controller may be an initiator and may perform ranging with an unknown UWB device. In the present disclosure, a scheduling mode using contention-based ranging may be referred to as a contention-based mode.

Contention-based ranging may be used for a ranging round in which a controller determines a Contention Access Period (CAP) size and informs the CAP size through a ranging control message. In the present disclosure, the contention access period may be referred to as a contention window or a contention window period.

In the contention-based mode, the UWB device may operate as a controller and an initiator, and in this case, a Ranging Control Phase (RCP) and a Ranging Initiation Phase (RIP) may be incorporated into the RIP. By allocating the CAP size in the Ranging Phase (RP), the CAP period for the respondents participating in the corresponding ranging round may be determined in units of ranging slots. Each responder may randomly determine a time slot in the CAP to transmit RRM. Messages used in contention-based ranging may use STS packet configuration 1 (SP 1) as an RFRAME configuration.

Hybrid ranging may be used when there are known and unknown slaves. As described above, a known slave may be a slave whose MAC address is known to the controller, and an unknown slave may be a slave whose MAC address is not known to the controller. In this disclosure, hybrid ranging may be referred to as hybrid-based ranging. The scheduling mode using the hybrid ranging may be referred to as a hybrid-based mode.

In the hybrid-based mode, the controller may perform ranging with a known slave in a scheduling-based mode and perform ranging with an unknown slave in a contention-based mode.

In the hybrid-based mode, the ranging round may include a Ranging Control Phase (RCP) and a Ranging Phase (RP). The RP may include a contention-free period for the scheduled ranging (access) and a CAP for the contention-based ranging (access). In the present disclosure, a control message (ranging control message) used in RCP in the hybrid-based mode may be referred to as a Ranging Management Message (RMM).

Fig. 1 shows a communication system to which the present disclosure is applied.

The communication system of fig. 1 may be, for example, using a device such as UWB or Bluetooth ^TM A UWB communication system in which communication is performed.

Referring to fig. 1, the electronic device may perform communication in a one-to-one scheme, a one-to-many scheme, or a many-to-many scheme. In one embodiment, one electronic device in the communication system may perform the role of a BLE scanner (scanner) and another electronic device may perform the role of a BLE broadcaster (advertisement). It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that an electronic device that has performed the role of a BLE scanner in a relationship with a first electronic device may perform the role of a BLE broadcaster in a relationship with a second electronic device.

In addition, one electronic device in the communication system may perform the role of a UWB controller, while another electronic device may perform the role of a UWB slave. It will also be apparent to those skilled in the art that an electronic device that has performed the role of a UWB controller in a relationship with a first electronic device may perform the role of a UWB slave in a relationship with a second electronic device.

Furthermore, one electronic device may perform both roles of UWB controller (or UWB slave) and BLE scanner (or BLE broadcaster). For example, a first electronic device may perform the roles of UWB controller and BLE broadcaster, and a second electronic device may perform the roles of UWB slave and BLE scanner. The operation of a communication system including the above-described electronic device is described with reference to fig. 2.

Fig. 2 shows a flow chart of a method of operation of a communication system to which the present disclosure is applied.

The communication system in fig. 2 comprises a first electronic device 201 and a second electronic device 202 for UWB communication. In one embodiment, the first electronic device 201 performs the roles of UWB controller and BLE broadcaster, and the second electronic device 202 performs the roles of UWB slave and BLE scanner.

In this disclosure, a UWB controller may correspond to an electronic device for controlling UWB ranging and defining ranging parameters, and a UWB slave may correspond to an electronic device using ranging parameters received from (or defined by) the UWB controller. UWB controllers may be referred to simply as "controllers" and UWB slaves may be referred to simply as "slaves". Further, the first electronic device may be referred to as a "first UWB device" and the second electronic device may be referred to as a "second UWB device".

(1) Device discovery process 210

In the embodiment of fig. 2, the communication system performs the device discovery procedure 210 by using a BLE communication scheme. For example, in operation 211, the first electronic device (BLE broadcaster) 201 may send a broadcast message/packet (e.g., a BLE adv_ind packet) for broadcasting to the second electronic device (BLE scanner) 202, and in operation 212, the second electronic device 202 may send a SCAN request message/packet (e.g., a BLE scan_req packet) to the first electronic device 201 based on the broadcast message/packet. And in operation 213, the first electronic device 201 may transmit a response message/packet (e.g., ble_scan_rsp packet) to the second electronic device 202 for the SCAN request message/packet. Through the device discovery process, the first electronic device 201 may be discovered by the second electronic device 202. The BLE device discovery procedure follows a well-known BLE device discovery procedure, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

(2) UWB ranging procedure 220

Once the device discovery process is completed, the communication system may perform a UWB ranging process 220 to measure the location of or distance between electronic devices by using a UWB communication scheme.

Meanwhile, the UWB ranging process 220 may also be applied to a UWB ranging process used when UWB in-band device discovery (to be described later) is used as a device discovery method.

For example, in operation 221 (ranging control phase (RCP)), the first electronic device (UWB controller) 201 may send a UWB control message (e.g., ranging control message) to the second electronic device (UWB slave) 202. Through this operation, the first electronic device may control ranging and define ranging parameters. The ranging control message may correspond to a data frame carrying an advanced ranging control IE (ARC IE).

In operation 222 (ranging initiation phase (RIP)), the first electronic device 201 may send a UWB initiation message (e.g., a Ranging Initiation Message (RIM)) to the second electronic device 202. The ranging initiation message may be a first message sent to initiate a ranging exchange. The first electronic device 201 may send the ranging control message and the ranging initiation message through a single message. For example, the first electronic device 201 may send a ranging initiation message including a ranging control message.

In operation 223 (ranging response phase (RRP)), the second electronic device 202 may send a UWB response message (e.g., ranging response message (RPM)) corresponding to the UWB origination message to the first electronic device 202. Although the embodiment of fig. 2 shows an example in which a UWB controller performs a role of an initiator initiating a ranging exchange by transmitting a ranging initiation message, and a UWB slave performs a role of a responder responding to the ranging initiation message received from the initiator, the present disclosure is not limited to the above example. For example, unlike the illustration in fig. 2, the UWB slave may perform the role of an initiator and the UWB controller may perform the role of a responder.

In operation 224 (ranging final stage (RFP)), the first electronic device 201 may send a UWB final message (e.g., ranging Final Message (RFM)) to the second electronic device. According to an embodiment, the operational phase 224 may be omitted. For example, the operational phase 224 may be used only in the case of DS-TWR.

In one embodiment, the UWB ranging process may also include a Measurement Reporting Phase (MRP). The measurement reporting phase may correspond to a phase in which ranging information and/or related service information is exchanged by electronic devices participating in UWB ranging. The ranging message used in the measurement reporting stage may correspond to an MRM, RRRM, or Control Update Message (CUM). In one embodiment, the MRM may be included in the RRM or RFM and transmitted.

The UWB ranging process may be performed in one ranging round. The ranging round may correspond to a period of time for completing the duration of the entire ranging-measuring period (ranging period) involving the set of UWB devices involved in the ranging exchange (the ranging round is a period of time for completing the duration of the entire ranging-measuring period (ranging period) involving the set of ERDEVs involved in the ranging exchange). Each ranging round may include a plurality of ranging slots. The ranging slot may be a period of time for transmitting at least one frame (ranging frame (RFRAME) or data frame) for a sufficient time.

In a certain ranging round, multiple ranging phases may be combined into a single phase. For example, the RCP and RIP may be combined into a single stage. Furthermore, in the ranging round, some stages may be omitted. For example, RFP may be omitted in a single side two-way ranging (SS-TWR) ranging round, and, in addition, MRP may be omitted in a particular ranging round.

The above description of UWB ranging procedure may be referred to the description of IEEE standard 802.15.4z-2020 and FiRa alliance UWB MAC specifications.

In the above-described embodiment of fig. 2, only the BLE communication scheme is used for device discovery, and thus, the UWB communication module for UWB communication may remain in an inactive state until the device discovery process is completed. In other words, UWB communication modules that consume a relatively large amount of power may remain inactive until the device discovery process is completed, and UWB communication modules that consume only a relatively small amount of power may remain active. Further, only when the device discovery is completed through the active BLE communication module, the UWB communication module is activated and the UWB ranging process may be performed. Therefore, power consumption can be reduced.

However, in this case, delay due to a scan interval (e.g., 3120 ms) of BLE discovery, delay due to simultaneous connection support restriction (e.g., simultaneous connection is allowed for four electronic devices at most), and collision in BLE communication schemes may occur, and cost problems due to installation of BLE communication modules in addition to UWB communication modules in electronic devices may occur.

Thus, balancing the advantages of using a BLE communication scheme for device discovery, device discovery using only a BLE communication scheme may be applicable to UWB ranging initiated services (e.g., passive access control) that require no user input (e.g., application execution input), but may not be applicable to situations where ranging is initiated by user input or where power is always connected (e.g., point of service (POS) payment devices).

Thus, new schemes need to be considered, such as device discovery using UWB communication schemes. In this disclosure, device discovery using a UWB communication scheme may be referred to as UWB in-band device discovery, UWB in-band discovery, in-band device discovery, in-band discovery, or first device discovery. Device discovery using BLE communication schemes may be referred to as BLE device discovery, UWB out-of-band discovery, out-of-band device discovery, out-of-band discovery, or second device discovery.

UWB in-band discovery may have two cases as described below.

Fig. 3A illustrates a first scenario of UWB in-band discovery according to an embodiment, and fig. 3B illustrates a second scenario of UWB in-band discovery according to an embodiment.

First scene (UWB only scene)

Referring to fig. 3A, in a first scenario, it is assumed that UWB ranging is performed only when an electronic device such as POS device 311 is always connected to a power supply and an application (app) associated with UWB communication is executed by the electronic device such as user terminal 312. In this case, the focus is on the need to reduce delay at most, rather than power consumption. Thus, UWB in-band device discovery may be more appropriate than BLE device discovery.

Second scene (scene using BLE and UWB)

Referring to fig. 3B, for example, in the second case, it is assumed that an electronic device such as a door (gate) 321 installed in a door lock/elevator is always connected to a power source, and an electronic device such as a user terminal 322 automatically performs UWB ranging (regardless of user input). In this case, it is necessary to consider the problem of power consumption at the user terminal and the problem of delay reduction. Thus, it may be appropriate to use part of the operations of UWB in-band device discovery and BLE device discovery together (e.g., BLE broadcast packet transmission operations).

Fig. 4 is a flowchart illustrating UWB in-band discovery according to an embodiment.

In the embodiment of fig. 4, the first electronic device 401 corresponds to an electronic device (first UWB device) performing the role of a UWB controller, and the second electronic device 402 corresponds to an electronic device (second UWB device) performing the role of a UWB slave.

(1) Operation 4010

In operation 4010, the first electronic device 401 can send a control message (first control message) for UWB ranging or UWB in-band discovery for at least one electronic device by using a UWB communication scheme. The first electronic device 401 may broadcast the first control message periodically and aperiodically. The control message may be sent at the RCP or RIP in the ranging round.

The first control message may include information about the contention window. At least one electronic device may perform random access (contention-based access) to the first electronic device 401 through a contention window. Further, the control message may include identification information of the control message (e.g., a message ID), identification information of the first electronic device 401 (e.g., a unique value (e.g., a MAC address) for identifying the UWB controller), and/or identification information of a target service associated with the UWB (e.g., a unique value (e.g., a service UUID) indicating the target service).

The contention window may be used for contention-based access. The contention window or a period of the contention window may also be referred to as a Contention Access Period (CAP).

The information about the contention window may include at least one of information about a size of the contention window, information about an end slot of the contention window, information about a start slot and an end slot of the contention window, or information about respective slot numbers of slots constituting the contention window. From this information, the location and/or number of time slots, etc., corresponding to the contention window may be identified. The contention window size may be adjusted by the controller in consideration of power consumption and contention resolution.

Table 1 shows an example of a control message including information about a contention window size. Table 1 may be an example of a content field of a payload IE of a control message. In this case, the payload IE may be included in the payload of the MAC frame for UWB communication and transmitted.

TABLE 1

Referring to table 1, the control message may include a message control field, a ranging device management list field, and/or a contention window size field.

The control field of the control message may include a ranging device management list length field. The ranging device management list length field may include information about the size of the ranging device management list field. For example, the ranging device management list length field may indicate the number of elements included in the ranging device management list field.

The ranging device management list field may include scheduling information for at least one ranging device (UWB device). For example, the ranging device management list field may include a list of ranging roles, ranging slot indices, and/or addresses (e.g., MAC addresses) of ranging devices (e.g., slaves and/or respondents). Through the ranging device management list field, the controller may schedule the slave/responder. For example, when the ranging device management list field includes a list of MAC addresses of the slave/responder, the slave/responder may be scheduled based on the order of the MAC addresses included in the list. For example, when the ranging device management list field includes a list arranged in the order of the MAC address (address a) of the controller a, the MAC address (address B) of the controller B, and the MAC address (address C) of the controller C, the controller a of the address a may respond in the slot 1, the controller B of the address B may respond in the slot 2 which is the next slot of the slot 1, and the controller C of the address C may respond in the slot 3 which is the next slot of the slot 2.

The ranging device management list field may include elements (list elements) corresponding to the number indicated by the ranging device management list length field, and each element may include scheduling information for the corresponding ranging device. For example, each element of the ranging device management list field may include a ranging role, ranging slot index (e.g., a ranging slot index assigned to a corresponding ranging device (e.g., a slave and/or responder), and/or address (e.g., a MAC address) of the corresponding ranging device.

In one embodiment, the first electronic device (controller) may configure the ranging device management list field for the slave based on the MAC address of the slave included in the scheduling request message to be described later. In another embodiment, the first electronic device (controller) may configure the ranging device management list field based on the MAC address of the slave responding within the contention window in the previous ranging block (or round).

In the present disclosure, the ranging device management list field may be referred to as a device management list field or a Responder Management List (RML) field, and the ranging device management list length field may be referred to as a device management list length field or an RML size field.

The message control portion (field) of the control message may include a contention window presence field. The contention window present field corresponds to a 1-bit flag, and may indicate whether a contention window size field exists. For example, the contention window present field may be configured with one of a first value indicating the presence of the contention window size field and a second value indicating the absence of the contention window size field.

The control message may include a contention window size field when the contention window presence field indicates the presence of the contention window size field. The contention window size field may indicate the number of ranging slots used for the contention window. The size of the contention window may be identified by a contention window size field. The starting slot (ranging slot) of the contention window may be determined according to a predetermined reference. For example, a ranging slot immediately following a ranging slot in which the control message is transmitted may be determined as a starting slot of the contention window. In another example, a ranging slot immediately following a ranging slot (scheduling slot) allocated for scheduling-based access may be determined as a starting slot of the contention window.

The control messages in table 1 above are merely examples, and the control messages are not limited to the embodiments in table 1.

Table 2 shows an example of a control message including information about an end slot of a contention window. Table 2 may be an example of a content field of a payload IE of a control message. In this case, the payload IE may be included in the payload of the MAC frame for UWB communication and transmitted.

TABLE 2

Referring to table 2, the control message may include a message control field, a ranging device management list field, and/or a contention window size field.

The ranging device management list field may include scheduling information for at least one ranging device (UWB device). For example, the ranging device management list field may include a list of ranging roles, ranging slot indices, and/or addresses (e.g., MAC addresses) of ranging devices (e.g., slaves/responders). Through the ranging device management list field, the controller may schedule the slave/responder. For example, when the ranging device management list field includes a list of MAC addresses of the slave/responder, the controller/responder may be scheduled based on the order of the MAC addresses included in the list. For example, when the ranging device management list field includes a list in the order of MAC address (address a) of controller a, MAC address (address B) of controller B, and MAC address (address C) of controller C, controller a of address a may respond in slot 1, controller B of address B may respond in slot 2, which is the next slot of slot 1, and controller C of address C may respond in slot 3, which is the next slot of slot 2.

The ranging device management list field may include elements (list elements) corresponding to the number indicated by the ranging device management list length field, and each element may include scheduling information for the corresponding ranging device. For example, each element of the ranging device management list field may include a ranging role, ranging slot index (e.g., ranging slot index assigned to a corresponding ranging device (e.g., slave/responder), and/or an address (e.g., MAC address) of the corresponding ranging device.

The message control portion (field) of the control message may include a contention window presence field. The contention window present field corresponds to a 1-bit flag and may indicate whether a contention window end slot field exists. For example, the contention window present field may be configured with one of a first value indicating the presence of the contention window end slot field and a second value indicating the absence of the contention window end slot field.

The control message may include a contention window end slot field when the contention window presence field indicates the presence of the contention window end slot field. The contention window end slot field may indicate an index of a last ranging slot in the contention window. The starting slot (ranging slot) of the contention window may be determined according to a predetermined reference. For example, a ranging slot immediately following a ranging slot in which the control message is transmitted may be determined as a starting slot of the contention window. In another example, a ranging slot immediately following a ranging slot (scheduling slot) allocated for scheduling-based access may be determined as a starting slot of the contention window.

The control message may also include information about a session associated with UWB (UWB session). The information about the session may include at least one of UWB session ID information, information about a UWB ranging method, information about a UWB ranging frame configuration, information about an angle of arrival (AoA) report, and information about a scrambling time stamp sequence (STS) configuration. With this information, parameters for UWB ranging and/or communication may be configured.

The control messages in table 2 above are merely examples, and the control messages are not limited to the embodiments of table 2.

Table 3 shows an example of a control message including information about a session associated with UWB. Table 3 may be an example of a content field of a payload IE of a control message. In this case, the payload IE may be included in the payload of the MAC frame for UWB communication and transmitted.

TABLE 3

Referring to table 3, the control message may include a message control field, a ranging device management list field, a contention window size field, and/or a UWB configuration field.

The ranging device management list field may include scheduling information for at least one ranging device (UWB device). For example, the ranging device management list field may include a list of ranging roles, ranging slot indices, and/or addresses (e.g., MAC addresses) of ranging devices (e.g., slaves/responders). Through the ranging device management list field, the controller may schedule the slave/responder. For example, when the ranging device management list field includes a list of MAC addresses of the slave/responder, the slave/responder may be scheduled based on the order of the MAC addresses included in the list. For example, when the ranging device management list field includes a list in the order of MAC address (address a) of controller a, MAC address (address B) of controller B, and MAC address (address C) of controller C, controller a of address a may respond in slot 1, controller B of address B may respond in slot 2, which is the next slot of slot 1, and controller C of address C may respond in slot 3, which is the next slot of slot 2.

The ranging device management list field may include elements (list elements) corresponding to the number indicated by the ranging device management list length field, and each element may include scheduling information for the corresponding ranging device. For example, each element of the ranging device management list field may include a ranging role, ranging slot index (e.g., ranging slot index assigned to a corresponding ranging device (e.g., a slave/responder), and/or address (e.g., a MAC address) of the corresponding ranging device.

The message control portion (field) of the control message may include a UWB configuration presence field. The UWB configuration present field corresponds to a 1-bit flag and may indicate whether the UWB configuration information field is present. For example, the UWB configuration present field may be configured with one of a first value indicating the presence of the UWB configuration information field and a second value indicating the absence of the UWB configuration information field.

When the UWB configuration presence field indicates the presence of a UWB configuration information field, the control message may include the UWB configuration information field. The UWB configuration information field may include a ranging method field, a Ranging Frame (RFRAME) configuration field, an AoA report field, and/or an STS configuration field.

The ranging method field may correspond to a field indicating one of the ranging methods. Ranging methods may include one-way ranging (OWR), SS-TWR, and DS-TWR.

The RFRAME configuration field may indicate one of the RFRAME configurations. RFRAME configurations may include STS packet configuration 0 (SP 0), STS packet configuration 1 (SP 1), and STS packet configuration 3 (SP 3).

The AoA report field may indicate whether an AoA report exists. For example, the AoA report field may be configured to have one of a first value indicating no AoA report and a second value indicating an AoA report.

The STS configuration field may indicate one of the STS configurations. STS configurations may include static STS and dynamic STS.

The control messages in table 3 are merely examples, and the control messages are not limited to the embodiments of table 3.

According to an embodiment, the information on the contention window, the identification information of the control message, the identification information of the electronic device for transmitting the control message, and the identification information of the target service may correspond to mandatory information included in the control message, and the information on the session may correspond to optional information included in the control message.

(2) Operation 4020

In operation 4020 of fig. 4, a second electronic device 402 of the at least one electronic device that has received the control message may transmit a Scheduling Request Message (SRM) for scheduling the second electronic device 402 in a contention window by using the UWB communication scheme. The contention window may correspond to RRP in the ranging round.

The scheduling request message may be used to request scheduling-based access/ranging.

The second electronic device may send the scheduling request message in any time slot (random time slot) in the contention window. According to an embodiment, the plurality of second electronic devices may send the scheduling request message in a contention window. In this case, each of the second electronic devices may prevent consecutive collision of the scheduling request message by a scheme of randomly selecting a slot in the contention window to transmit the scheduling request message. Alternatively, consecutive collisions of scheduling request messages may be prevented by another collision avoidance scheme.

The scheduling request message may include at least one of identification information (e.g., a message ID) of the scheduling request message or identification information of the second electronic device 402 (e.g., a unique value (e.g., a MAC address) for identifying the UWB slave). From this information, the second electronic device 402 can be found. In this way, the scheduling request message (or information included in the scheduling request message) may be used for UWB in-band discovery.

In the case of scheduling-based ranging, the controller already knows the MAC address of the slave (or responder), and thus, the response message of the slave used in the scheduling-based ranging does not necessarily include the MAC address (source address) of the slave. However, in the case of contention-based ranging, the controller does not know the MAC address of the slave (or responder), and thus, the scheduling request message (response message) of the slave used in contention-based ranging should include the MAC address (source address) of the slave (or responder). With the MAC address, the controller can discover the slave (second electronic device), and schedule-based ranging (access) can be performed between the controller and the slave later.

The scheduling request message may also include identification information of the first electronic device 401 and identification information of the target service associated with UWB (e.g., a unique value indicating the target service (e.g., service UUID)). The identification information of the first electronic device 401 of the scheduling request message and the identification information of the target service associated with UWB may be identical to the identification information of the first electronic device 401 of the control message and the identification information of the target service associated with UWB.

When the scheduling request message is included in the contention window, the first electronic device 401 may allocate the scheduled resource to the second electronic device 402. The first electronic device may allocate at least one scheduled time slot to the second electronic device 402. Information (scheduling information) about the allocated scheduling resources (or slots) may be transmitted through a control message (second control message) of the first electronic device 401. For example, a list of MAC addresses of slaves (or responders) to which a scheduling slot is allocated may be transmitted via a ranging device management list field. In this case, the slaves/responders may be scheduled based on the order of MAC addresses included in the list. For example, when the ranging device management list field includes a list in the order of the MAC address of controller a (address a), the MAC address of controller B (address B), and the MAC address of controller C (address C), controller a of address a may respond in slot 1, controller B of address B may respond in slot 2, which is the next slot of slot 1, and controller C of address C may respond in slot 3, which is the next slot of slot 2.

The second control message may be included in a transport block (first ranging period) after a transport block (second ranging period) including the first control message. In this case, the second electronic device 402 found by the current transport block may be scheduled in the next transport block. By allocating scheduling slots, the efficiency of stable ranging and contention windows can be achieved. The second electronic device 402 may send a scheduling request message until scheduling is performed by the control message of the first electronic device 401.

The scheduling request message may be included in a Ranging Response Message (RRM) and transmitted. In this case, the RRM may include a Measurement Report Message (MRM) (e.g., MRM type 3).

The MRM may include a header IE and/or a payload IE.

Table 4 shows an example of the content field of the header IE of the MRM below.

TABLE 4

Parameters (parameters)	Size (byte)	Annotating
			Supplier OUI	3	0x5A18FF
Filling	8	Known padding for integrity checking
			Session ID	4	UWB session identifier
STS index	4	STS index of current ranging slot

Table 5 shows an example of the content field of the payload IE of the MRM below.

TABLE 5

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In table 5, the MRM may include AoA related information. For example, the MRM may include an AoA azimuth result field that provides an AoA azimuth result, an AoA elevation result field that provides an AoA elevation result, an AoA azimuth figure of merit (FOM) field that provides an AoA azimuth FOM, and/or an AoA elevation FOM field that provides an AoA elevation FOM.

In one embodiment, the presence or absence of the AoA azimuth result field, the AoA elevation result field, the AoA azimuth FOM field, and the AoA elevation FOM field may be indicated by a message control field.

Table 6 shows an example of the message control field in the content field of the payload IE of the MRM below.

TABLE 6

Fig. 5 shows a transport block for UWB in-band discovery according to an embodiment.

In fig. 5, the transport block may correspond to a ranging round for contention-based ranging and hybrid ranging, or may correspond to a ranging block including the ranging round.

Referring to fig. 5, a transport block for UWB in-band discovery may include a plurality of slots.

In one embodiment, the transport block may have the same structure as that of a ranging block for UWB ranging. In this case, the transport block may include a plurality of ranging rounds, and each ranging round may include a plurality of ranging slots. The ranging round corresponds to a period sufficient to complete an entire ranging cycle including a set of electronic devices participating in a ranging exchange, and the ranging slot corresponds to a period sufficient to transmit at least one Ranging Frame (RFRAME).

In another embodiment, the transport block may have a structure different from that of the ranging block. For example, the transport block may have a structure that discovers newly defined blocks in-band for UWB.

Referring to fig. 5, a control message may be transmitted through a first slot of a transport block. For example, the control message may be transmitted through the first slot of the transport block or the first slot of each ranging round in the transport block. In another example, the control message may be transmitted through the first n slots in the transport block or one slot determined from a preconfigured reference in the first n slots of each ranging round in the transport block.

The control message may correspond to a Ranging Control Message (RCM) for configuring a ranging parameter, or may be included in the RCM. The control message may also be a newly defined message separate from the RCM.

Referring to fig. 5, at least one slot after the first slot including the control message may be allocated as a contention window.

For example, as shown in fig. 5, three slots from a slot two slots immediately after a first slot including a control message may be allocated as the contention window.

In another example, three slots from a slot immediately after the first slot including the control message may be allocated as the contention window. In this case, the start slot of the contention window is designated as a slot immediately after the slot in which the control message is transmitted, and thus, even when only information about the size of the contention window or information about the end slot of the contention window is transmitted, the position and size of the contention window can be identified.

The transport block may include at least one scheduled time slot for scheduling-based access (ranging) of at least one electronic device. For example, the first time slot of the contention window and the time slot between the time slots may be allocated as a scheduling time slot for a particular electronic device. As described above, information about the scheduled time slots may be transmitted through a control message. In this case, as shown in fig. 5, the start slot of the contention window may be determined as a slot immediately after a slot allocated as the scheduling slot.

Referring to fig. 5, the scheduling request message may be transmitted from any one slot (random slot) in the contention window, i.e., may be transmitted randomly. For example, as shown in fig. 5, the scheduling request message of the second electronic device may be transmitted in the second slot of the contention window. Collisions may occur when scheduling request messages from multiple electronic devices are sent in the same time slot in a contention window. However, as described above, the transmission slots of the scheduling request message in the contention window are randomly selected, so that consecutive collisions can be prevented.

The UWB in-band discovery process described with reference to fig. 4 and 5 through the above-described first scenario in fig. 3A is described as an example. First, the POS device (first electronic device) may periodically transmit a control message, a user desiring to make a payment may execute an application of the user terminal (second electronic device), the user terminal having received the control message may perform random access in a contention window, and the POS device may perform scheduling of the user terminal.

Fig. 6 is a flowchart illustrating UWB in-band discovery according to an embodiment.

In fig. 6, a first electronic device 601 corresponds to an electronic device (first UWB device) that performs the role of a UWB controller, and a second electronic device 602 corresponds to an electronic device (second UWB device) that performs the role of a UWB slave.

In fig. 6, unlike the embodiment of fig. 4, BLE broadcast messages/packets are used for UWB in-band discovery. The embodiment of fig. 6 differs from the normal BLE device discovery/connection procedure in that both device discovery and connection are performed in a BLE communication scheme through BLE broadcast packets, which are received and then device discovery is performed through the above-described UWB in-band discovery scheme without separately exchanging additional BLE messages (e.g., BLE SCAN REQ/RSP messages). Thus, in the case of the embodiment of fig. 6, advantageously, no delay due to collisions between BLE messages and restrictions of simultaneous connections of BLE messages occurs. The embodiment of fig. 6 may be applicable to a case where the controller flexibly configures UWB parameters, or a case where the slave automatically performs ranging (e.g., the case of fig. 3B).

In operation 6010, the first electronic device 601 may transmit a BLE broadcast message/packet. The BLE broadcast message may include at least one of identification information of the first electronic device 601 and identification information of a target service associated with UWB. Further, the BLE broadcast message may include UWB parameter information for parameters configured for UWB communications. The UWB parameter information may include at least one of a channel number, a preamble index, a Physical (PHY) layer parameter set, a session ID, or a MAC address. A communication environment for UWB communication can be established through the above UWB parameter information.

In operation 6020, the first electronic device 601 may transmit a control message for UWB in-band discovery of at least one electronic device. The first electronic device 601 may broadcast control messages periodically or aperiodically. Description of operation 6020 and the control message may refer to description of operation 4010 and the control message in fig. 4.

In operation 6030, the second electronic device 602 of the at least one electronic device may send a scheduling request message in a contention window for scheduling the second electronic device 602. The second electronic device 602 may send the scheduling request message in a random time slot in the contention window. The description of operation 6030 and the scheduling request message may refer to the description of operation 4020 and the scheduling request message in fig. 4.

Next, the UWB in-band discovery process described with reference to fig. 6 through the above-described second scenario in fig. 3B is described as an example. First, the gate device (first electronic device) may periodically transmit a BLE broadcast packet, the user terminal (second electronic device) having received the BLE broadcast packet may activate the UWB module, the user terminal may receive the control message and perform random access in a contention window, and the gate device may perform scheduling for the user terminal.

Hereinafter, embodiments of an electronic device including both a BLE communication module and a UWB communication module or selectively managing a BLE device discovery scheme or a UWB device discovery (UWB in-band discovery) scheme are described.

As described above, UWB in-band discovery is more advantageous than BLE device discovery in view of simultaneous device discovery, but requires more power consumption. It is therefore important to select a device discovery scheme that is appropriate for a certain situation, and for this purpose, the UWB controller may provide an indicator indicating the device discovery scheme to be used. In this case, when the use of UWB in-band discovery by the controller is identified/detected by the indicator, UWB control may perform UWB in-band discovery instead of BLE discovery. Hereinafter, a method for selectively managing UWB in-band discovery is described with reference to fig. 7.

Fig. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method for selectively managing UWB in-band discovery, according to an embodiment.

In fig. 7, the first electronic device corresponds to an electronic device (first UWB device) that performs the role of the UWB controller, and the second electronic device corresponds to an electronic device (second UWB device) that performs the role of the UWB slave.

In fig. 7, the BLE broadcast message/packet may include indication information indicating whether BLE device discovery is used, whether UWB device discovery is used (UWB in-band discovery), or whether BLE device discovery and UWB device discovery are simultaneously used, in addition to the embodiment of fig. 6.

At step 7010, the second electronic device may receive a BLE broadcast message/packet. The BLE broadcast message may include indication information indicating whether BLE device discovery is used, whether UWB device discovery is used (UWB in-band discovery), or whether BLE device discovery and UWB device discovery are used together. Table 7 shows an example of a BLE broadcast message.

TABLE 7

Referring to fig. 7, the ble broadcast message may include indication information, channel field/information (UWB channel), a preamble index (UWB preamble index), and/or a physical layer parameter set (UWB PHY parameter set). The indication information may be referred to as an in-band discovery indicator, in-band discovery indication information, or an indicator.

In one embodiment, the indication information corresponds to a 1-bit flag and may be configured, for example, to indicate one of a first value (e.g., 0) to be found using BLE and a second value (e.g., 1) to be found using UWB in-band.

In another embodiment, the indication information corresponds to a 2-bit flag and may be configured to have one of a first value (e.g., 00) indicating that BLE discovery is to be used, a second value (e.g., 01) indicating that in-band discovery is to be used, or a third value (e.g., 10 or 11) indicating that BLE discovery and in-band discovery are used together.

The channel information corresponds to information having a size of 0 bit or a size of 3 bits, and may indicate a UWB channel number (e.g., 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, or 14).

The preamble index corresponds to a field having a 0-bit size or a 3-bit size, and may indicate a UWB code index (e.g., 1 to 8).

The physical layer parameter set corresponds to a field having a 0-bit size or a 2-bit size, and may indicate a Base Pulse Repetition Frequency (BPRF) PHY parameter set (e.g., 1 to 4).

When the value of the indication information is 0, the channel information, the preamble index, and the physical layer parameter set may not be included in the BLE broadcast message.

The above-described BLE broadcast message in table 7 is merely an example, and the BLE broadcast message is not limited to the embodiment in table 7.

In step 7020, the second electronic device can identify (determine) whether to use UWB in-band discovery based on the indication information. The second electronic device may identify whether to use BLE discovery or UWB in-band discovery based on the value of the indication information.

In step 7030, the second electronic device can perform a UWB in-band discovery process with the first electronic device when identifying use of UWB in-band discovery. This may refer to the UWB in-band discovery process in fig. 4.

In step 7040, when the use of BLE discovery is identified, the second electronic device may perform a BLE discovery procedure with the first electronic device. This may refer to the BLE device discovery procedure in fig. 2.

Hereinafter, embodiments relating to switching of a device discovery scheme and adjustment of a contention window size will be described.

In a state where the BLE discovery scheme is applied, the first electronic device may switch the device discovery scheme from the BLE discovery scheme to the UWB in-band discovery scheme, by repeating the detection of a collision in the response to the BLE broadcast message (e.g., a case where the ble_scan_req message/packet for the ble_adv_ind message/packet is not received but energy is detected) a pre-configured number of times (e.g., N) or more. In this case, the first electronic device may configure the value of the indication information with a value indicating the use found in the UWB band.

In a state where the UWB in-band discovery scheme is applied, the first electronic device may switch the device discovery scheme from the UWB in-band discovery scheme to the BLE discovery scheme when the UWB ranging session ends, or when there is a preconfigured number (e.g., N) or more of repeated blocks in which a signal (frame/message) of a slave in the contention window is no longer received. In this case, the first electronic device may configure the value of the indication information with a value indicating the use of BLE discovery.

In one embodiment, the first electronic device may expand the contention window size when a ratio of time slots (time slots used) used in the contention window is greater than or equal to a preconfigured ratio (e.g., M%). In another embodiment, the first electronic device may reduce the contention window size when a ratio of time slots (time slots used) used in the contention window is less than or equal to a preconfigured ratio (e.g., M%). Here, the used slots may correspond to slots in which no collision is generated with respect to a Scheduling Request Message (SRM), and the ratio of the used slots may correspond to a collision ratio. Thus, the contention window size may be dynamically/adaptively adjusted by the controller according to the collision ratio (ratio of time slots used).

Hereinafter, a scenario of selectively managing UWB in-band discovery is described.

When the UWB controller is not using the UWB communication module, the UWB controller may configure the indicator of the BLE ADV message to have a first value (e.g., 0) and inform the UWB slave that no UWB in-band discovery is used.

For example, when many users suddenly leave the elevator, a collision between the response messages (scab_req) of BLE ADV may occur.

In this case, the UWB controller may detect the collision and set the value of the indicator to have a second value (e.g., 1) to inform the UWB slave of the use found in-band by the UWB. In addition, the UWB controller may provide information about the contention window through the control message.

The UWB slave that has received BLE ADV may recognize the use of UWB in-band discovery and activate the UWB module to receive the control message. Thereafter, the UWB slave may transmit a scheduling request message including identification information (e.g., MAC address) of the UWB slave in the contention window.

For example, the UWB controller may configure the discard of UWB in-band discovery when the scheduling request message is no longer received in the contention window, or when the UWB session ends.

Hereinafter, a method for preventing collision of frames (messages) of the UWB controller will be described with reference to fig. 8. For example, when each of a plurality of controllers transmits a control message in the same slot, a collision occurs, which may result in the above-described UWB in-band discovery not being performed. In this case, a method for preventing continuous collision needs to be considered. Two methods of preventing successive collisions of controller frames are described herein.

One is a method of randomly transmitting a controller frame in a window for a controller (random transmission method). Another method is a method of transmitting a controller frame by using a slot hopping scheme in a window for a controller (slot hopping transmission method).

Fig. 8 illustrates a transport block or round including a contention window for a controller and a window for a controlled according to an embodiment.

As shown in fig. 8, the transport block may correspond to one round (one ranging round). For example, the transport block may correspond to a ranging round for contention-based ranging (or hybrid ranging).

Referring to fig. 8, a transport block or round may include a window for a controller (controller window) and a contention window for a slave (slave contention window). The transport block of fig. 8 may have the same structure as that of the transport block or round of fig. 5.

(1) Random transmission method

When applying the random transmission method, the controller may randomly select a time slot for transmitting a controller frame (e.g., a frame including a control message) in the controller window. In this case, the slave contention window may start immediately after the slot in which the controller frame (message) is transmitted.

When the random transmission method is applied, the slave should listen to the entire controller window. Frames (messages) are sent in randomly selected time slots in the controller window, so the slave should observe all time slots in the controller window.

When the random transmission method is applied, the operation is advantageous in that calculation such as calculation of a hopping sequence is not required, but it is disadvantageous that the slave should observe several slots.

(2) Time slot jump transmission method

When applying the slot hopping transmission method, the controller may select a slot for transmitting the controller frame based on a pre-configured hopping sequence equation. In this case, similar to the embodiment of the random transmission method, the slave contention window may start immediately after the slot in which the controller frame (message) is transmitted.

The hopping sequence equation may correspond to the following equation (1).

S(BlockIndex，SessionID，N _Round )＝((AES(BlockIndex，SessionID)&0xFFFF)N _Round )＞＞16

Here, N _round Represents the number of ranging rounds in a ranging block, and > represents a per-bit right-shift operator. AES-128 should be used for Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) functions. The BlockIndex and SessionID should be used for plain text and keywords, respectively. The description of the hopping sequence and equation (1) can be referred to the description of the IEEE standard 802.15.4z-2020 and FiRa alliance UWB MAC specifications.

When the slot hopping transmission method is applied, the slave can observe only the slot selected based on the pre-configured hopping sequence equation. Frames (messages) are transmitted in slots selected based on a predetermined equation, not in random slots, and thus, the slave can observe only the corresponding slots.

When the slot hopping transmission method is applied, it is advantageous that the slave can observe only one slot, but it is disadvantageous that calculation such as hopping sequence calculation is required.

Fig. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method of a first electronic device according to an embodiment.

In fig. 9, the first electronic device corresponds to an electronic device (first UWB device) that performs the role of the UWB controller, and the second electronic device corresponds to an electronic device (second UWB device) that performs the role of the UWB slave. A detailed description of each operation in fig. 9 may refer to the above description in fig. 1 to 8.

In step 910, the first electronic device may send a control message over the first communication scheme for UWB ranging or device discovery using the first communication scheme. The control message may include information about the contention window.

In step 920, the first electronic device may receive a scheduling request message for scheduling the second electronic device from the second electronic device through the first communication scheme in the contention window. The scheduling request message may include identification information of the second electronic device.

In step 930, the first electronic device may allocate scheduling resources for the second electronic device based on the scheduling request message.

The first electronic device may transmit a broadcast message through a second communication scheme different from the first communication scheme, the broadcast message including indication information indicating whether device discovery using the first communication scheme or device discovery using the second communication scheme is used.

When there is a preconfigured number or more of repeated blocks in the contention window where the scheduling request message is not received, the indication information may be changed from a first value indicating use of device discovery using the first communication scheme or a third value indicating use of both device discovery using the first communication scheme and device discovery using the second communication scheme to a second value indicating use of device discovery using the second communication scheme. When a collision of a preconfigured number or more of response messages corresponding to the broadcast message is detected, the indication information may be changed from a second value indicating that the device using the second communication scheme is found to a first value indicating that the device using the first communication scheme is found, or to a third value indicating that both the device using the first communication scheme and the device using the second communication scheme is found.

The information about the contention window may include at least one of information about a size of the contention window, information about an end slot of the contention window, information about a start slot and an end slot of the contention window, or information about respective slot numbers of slots constituting the contention window.

The size of the contention window may be adjusted based on the ratio of the used time slots in the contention window.

The control message may include at least one of identification information of the control message, identification information of the first electronic device, or identification information of a service associated with the first communication scheme.

The control message may further include information about a session associated with the first communication scheme, and the information about the session may include at least one of information about a ranging method associated with the first communication scheme, information about a ranging frame configuration associated with the first communication scheme, information about an AoA report associated with the first communication scheme, or information about an STS configuration associated with the first communication scheme.

The scheduling request message may further include identification information of the scheduling request message.

The scheduling request message may further include at least one of identification information of the first electronic device and identification information of a service associated with the first communication scheme.

The control message may include a first slot of the first transport slots, the scheduling request message may include a random slot in a contention window in the first transport block, the random slot being subsequent to the first slot, and the scheduling resource may correspond to at least one slot of a second transport block subsequent to the first transport block.

The first communication scheme may correspond to a communication scheme using UWB and the second communication scheme may correspond to a communication scheme different from UWB, for example, communication using another communication scheme using IEEE 802.15.4 or BLE (for example, a communication scheme using narrowband). The second communication scheme may correspond to various types of communication schemes different from UWB that satisfy the features of the second communication scheme in the present disclosure, and is not limited to the above-described embodiments.

Fig. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method of a second electronic device according to an embodiment.

In fig. 10, the first electronic device corresponds to an electronic device performing the role of the UWB controller, and the second electronic device corresponds to an electronic device performing the role of the UWB slave. A detailed description of each operation in fig. 10 may refer to the above description in fig. 1 to 9.

In step 1010, the second electronic device may receive a control message over the first communication scheme for UWB ranging or device discovery using the first communication scheme. The control message may include information about the contention window.

In step 1020, the second electronic device may send a scheduling request message for scheduling the second electronic device to the first electronic device over the first communication scheme in the contention window. The scheduling request message may include identification information of the second electronic device.

In step 1030, the second electronic device may perform a ranging procedure associated with the first communication scheme by using the scheduling resources allocated based on the scheduling request message.

The second electronic device may receive a broadcast message through a second communication scheme different from the first communication scheme, the broadcast message including indication information indicating whether device discovery using the first communication scheme or device discovery using the second communication scheme is used.

The second electronic device may activate the first communication scheme when the indication information is configured to have a first value indicating use of device discovery using the first communication scheme or a third value indicating use of both device discovery using the first communication scheme and device discovery using the second communication scheme.

The size of the contention window may be adjusted based on the ratio of time slots used in the contention window.

The control message may include a first time slot in the first transport block, the scheduling request message may include a random time slot in a contention window in the first transport block, the random time slot being subsequent to the first time slot, and the scheduling resource may correspond to at least one time slot of the second transport block subsequent to the first transport block.

The first communication scheme may correspond to a communication scheme using UWB and the second communication scheme may correspond to a communication scheme using BLE.

Fig. 11 shows a structure of a first electronic device according to an embodiment.

In fig. 11, the first electronic device may correspond to an electronic device (first UWB device) performing the role of the UWB controller, and the second electronic device may correspond to an electronic device (second UWB device) performing the role of the UWB slave.

Referring to fig. 11, the first electronic device may include a transceiver 1110, a controller 1120, and a memory 1130. A controller may be defined as a circuit, a dedicated circuit, or at least one processor.

Transceiver 1110 may transmit signals to or receive signals from another electronic device. The transceiver 1110 can transmit or receive data using, for example, UWB communication.

The controller 1120 may control the overall operation of the UWB in-band discovery method. For example, the controller 1120 may control signal flow between blocks to perform operations according to the flowcharts described above. In particular, the controller 1120 may control the operation of the UWB in-band discovery method described with reference to fig. 2 to 10, for example.

The first electronic device (first UWB device) may transmit a control message for contention-based access (or contention-based ranging) including information about a contention window (contention access period (CAP)) by using a UWB communication scheme.

The first electronic device (first UWB device) may receive a scheduling request message for a scheduling-based access (or a scheduling-based ranging) from the second electronic device (second UWB device) in one slot in the contention window by using the UWB communication scheme. The scheduling request message may be included in a Ranging Response Message (RRM).

The first electronic device (first UWB device) may configure a scheduling slot for the second UWB device based on the scheduling request message. The scheduling request message may be used for UWB-based device discovery (in-band device discovery).

The scheduling request message may include Media Access Control (MAC) address information of the second UWB device.

The time slot in which the control message is transmitted and the time slot in the contention window may be included together in a first ranging period (first ranging round) which is pre-configured, and the scheduling time slot for the second UWB device which is configured based on the scheduling request message may be included in a second ranging period (second ranging round) which follows the first ranging period.

The contention window may start from a slot immediately after the slot in which the control message is transmitted, and the information on the contention window may include contention window size information indicating the number of slots used in the contention window.

The first ranging period may further include at least one scheduling slot for scheduling-based access, and the information about the contention window may include information about a start slot of the contention window and information about an end slot of the contention window.

The time slot in which the control message is transmitted may correspond to a first time slot in the first ranging period.

The control message may further include at least one of device management list information including a list of addresses (e.g., MAC addresses) of at least one UWB device (e.g., a responder), information related to the size of the device management list information, or information related to the UWB session.

The contention window size of the second ranging period may be determined based on a ratio of time slots used in the contention window in the first ranging period.

The first electronic device (first UWB device) may transmit a BLE broadcast packet including an indicator indicating whether to use UWB-based device discovery (in-band device discovery) or BLE-based device discovery (out-of-band device discovery) by using a BLE communication scheme.

The memory 1130 may store at least one of information transmitted or received through the transceiver 1110 and information generated through the controller 1120. For example, the memory 1130 may store information and data found in UWB bands, such as described with reference to fig. 2 through 10.

In fig. 12, the first electronic device may correspond to an electronic device (first UWB device) performing the role of the UWB controller, and the second electronic device may correspond to an electronic device (second UWB device) performing the role of the UWB slave.

Referring to fig. 12, the second electronic device may include a transceiver 1210, a controller 1220, and a memory 1230. A controller in the present disclosure may be defined as a circuit, a dedicated circuit, or at least one processor.

The transceiver 1210 may transmit signals to or receive signals from another electronic device. The transceiver 1210 may transmit or receive data by using, for example, UWB communication.

The controller 1220 may control the overall operation of the UWB in-band discovery method. For example, the controller 1220 may control signal flow between blocks to perform operations according to the flowcharts described above. In particular, the controller 1220 may control the operation of the UWB in-band discovery method described with reference to fig. 2 to 10, for example.

The second electronic device (second UWB device) may receive a control message for contention-based access (or contention-based ranging) from the first electronic device (first UWB device) by using the UWB communication scheme, the control message including information about a contention window (contention access period (CAP)).

The second electronic device (second UWB device) may transmit a scheduling request message for the scheduling-based access (or the scheduling-based ranging) to the first electronic device (first UWB device) in one slot in the contention window by using the UWB communication scheme.

The scheduling request message may be included in the RRM.

The scheduling request message may be used for UWB-based device discovery (in-band device discovery).

The scheduling request message may include MAC address information of the second UWB device.

The second electronic device (second UWB device) may receive a BLE broadcast packet including an indicator indicating whether to use UWB-based device discovery (in-band device discovery) or BLE-based device discovery (out-of-band device discovery) by using a BLE communication scheme.

The memory 1230 may store at least one of information transmitted or received through the transceiver 1210 and information generated through the controller 1220. For example, the memory 1230 may store information and data found in UWB bands, such as described with reference to fig. 2 through 10.

Each of the first and second electronic devices in fig. 11 and 12 may have a protocol stack including an application layer, a MAC layer, a PHY layer, and a security layer.

The MAC layer and the PHY layer correspond to UWB-based MAC layers and PHY layers for UWB communication, and may conform to, for example, the IEEE 802.15.4/4z standard and what is specified in the FiRa alliance specifications. Further, the MAC layer and the PHY layer may correspond to those for supporting a communication scheme other than UWB communication. For example, the MAC layer and PHY layer may correspond to supporting 5G communication and/or Bluetooth ^TM 5G communication and/or Bluetooth based communication ^TM MAC layer and PHY layer of (a).

The service layer may define characteristics of services including payment services, location-based services, and the like in the present disclosure. Furthermore, the application layer and security layer may specify mechanisms for UWB device and service discovery, mechanisms for implementing devices in a complementary scheme, and complementary security requirements. The service layer, application layer and security layer may follow what is specified in the FiRa alliance specifications.

In the above detailed embodiments of the present disclosure, elements included in the present disclosure are expressed in singular or plural according to the presented detailed embodiments. However, for convenience of description, the singular or plural forms are appropriately selected as presented, and the present disclosure is not limited by the elements expressed in the singular or plural. Thus, an element expressed in a plurality of numbers can also include a single element, and an element expressed in the singular can also include a plurality of elements.

Although specific embodiments have been described in the detailed description of the disclosure, various modifications and changes can be made thereto without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, the scope of the disclosure should not be limited to the embodiments, but should be defined by the appended claims and equivalents thereof.

Claims

1. A method of a first ultra-wideband UWB device, the method comprising:

transmitting a control message by using the UWB communication scheme, the control message including information on a contention window of the contention-based access;

receiving a scheduling request message for scheduling-based access from a second UWB device in a time slot in the contention window by using the UWB communication scheme; and

configuring a scheduling slot for the second UWB device based on the scheduling request message,

wherein the scheduling request message is for UWB-based device discovery.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the scheduling request message includes media access control, MAC, address information of the second UWB device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the time slot in which the control message is transmitted and the time slot in the contention window are both included in a preconfigured first ranging period,

Wherein the scheduling slot configured for the second UWB device based on the scheduling request message is included in a second ranging period subsequent to the first ranging period, and

wherein the time slot in which the control message is transmitted corresponds to the first time slot in the first ranging period.

4. A method according to claim 3, wherein the contention window starts from a time slot immediately following a time slot in which the control message is transmitted, and

wherein the information on the contention window includes contention window size information indicating the number of slots used in the contention window.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the first ranging period comprises at least one scheduling slot for scheduling-based access, and

wherein the information about the contention window includes information about a start time slot of the contention window and information about an end time slot of the contention window.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the control message further comprises at least one of device management list information, information related to a size of the device management list information, or information related to a UWB session, the device management list information comprising an address list of at least one UWB device.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein the contention window size of the second ranging period is determined based on a ratio of time slots used in the contention window of the first ranging period, and

the method further includes transmitting a BLE broadcast packet by using a bluetooth low energy BLE communication scheme, the BLE broadcast packet including an indicator indicating whether to use the UWB-based device discovery or the BLE-based device discovery.

8. A method of a second ultra-wideband device UWB, the method comprising:

receiving a control message from a first UWB device using a UWB communication scheme, the control message including information about a contention window of a contention-based access device; and

using the UWB communication scheme, transmitting a scheduling request message for scheduling-based access to the first UWB device in a time slot in the contention window,

wherein the scheduling request message is for UWB-based device discovery.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the scheduling request message includes media access control, MAC, address information of the second UWB device.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the time slot in which the control message is transmitted and the time slot in the contention window are both included in a preconfigured first ranging period,

Wherein a scheduling slot configured for the second UWB device based on the scheduling request message is included in a second ranging period subsequent to the first ranging period, and

wherein the time slot in which the control message is transmitted corresponds to a first time slot in the first ranging period.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the contention window starts from a slot immediately following a slot in which the control message is transmitted, and

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the first ranging period comprises at least one scheduled time slot for scheduling-based access, and

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the control message further comprises at least one of device management list information, information related to a size of the device management list information, or information related to a UWB session, the device management list information comprising an address list of at least one UWB device.

14. A first ultra wideband UWB device comprising:

a transceiver; and

a controller configured to:

wherein the scheduling request message is for UWB-based device discovery.

15. A second ultra wideband UWB device, comprising:

a transceiver; and

a controller configured to:

receiving a control message from a first UWB device using a UWB communication scheme, the control message including information about a contention window of contention-based access; and

wherein the scheduling request message is for UWB-based device discovery.